Sunday, 8 February 2009

As of this writing, AP reports that the wildfire that has been burning the southeastern Australia has now claimed 84 lives, making it the country's deadliest fire disaster.

A bushfire burned through a forest on the outskirts of Labertouche, east of Melbourne. The police said they expected the death toll to rise. (Photo: Mick Tsikas/Reuters)A member of the Country Fire Authority monitored a giant fire raging in Bunyip State Park. Wildfires are a natural annual event in Australia, but this year a combination of scorching weather, drought and tinder-dry bush have created prime conditions for the fires to take hold. (Photo: William West/Agence France-Presse -- Getty Images)

After Michael Phelps, yet another famous athlete is dragged into drug controversy.

Alex Rodriguez, the highest-paid baseball player of the NY Yankees, tested positive for steroids in 2003, according to a report by Sports Illustrated published yesterday, February 7.

A-Rod is said to be positive in 2003 for the use of testosterone and an anabolic steroid with a brand known as Primobolan, when he won the American League home run title and the AL Most Valuable Player award as a shortstop for the Texas Rangers. According to a search of FDA records, Primobolan is not an approved prescription drug in the United States, nor was it in 2003.A-Rod declined to discuss the 2003 drug test when approached by an SI reporter on Thursday at a gym in Miami, saying: "You'll have to talk to the union." When asked if there was an explanation for his positive test, he said, "I'm not saying anything."

Fergie and Josh, who tied the knot at the Church Estates Vineyards in Malibu on January 10, shared their exclusive wedding pics to Usmagazine. The couple's intimate black and white pics in Elle's March issue can also be seen here.

Fergie and Josh exchanged H.Stern rings, with each band engraved with special personal messages by the bride and groom. Her engagement ring had a round, 4-carat brilliant cut diamond set amid other diamonds, with colors ranging from white to cognac. A narrow, colored diamond wedding band was designed to match. Duhamel's ring was made of 18K white gold with a brush finish.

Michael Phelps has been suspended by US Swimming from competion for three months, and Kellogg's has dropped him after a photo of him smoking marijuana from a glass pipe surfaced at a British tabloid last week.

Sorry Michael but you deserve this punishment :( When you are a sporting icon, youth role model and product endorser, you ought to have a squeaky clean image in and out of the pool.

Kellogg said it would drop its endorsement deal with Michael Phelps after a photograph surfaced in a British newspaper showing him inhaling from a marijuana pipeWhile Phelps's other sponsors like Speedo and Omega have accepted his apology, some including Visa and Subway have not had a stance yet.

Monday, 2 February 2009

Golden Globe-winning and Academy Award-nominated English film director and producer Danny Boyle won as Best Director at the Directors Guild of America (DGA) Awards last January 31.

Danny Boyle, winner of Best Director at DGA Awards

Boyle won for Slumdog Millionaire, a film about a young uneducated man from the slums of Mumbai who went on to win the top prize at game show Who Wants to be a Millionaire?.

Boyle has earlier won as Best Director at the Golden Globes on January 11 and Critics' Choice Awards on January 8.

Slumdog Millionaire, Best Picture winner at the Golden Globes and Screen Actors Guild (SAG) Awards, reaped 10 nominations at the Oscars this year, behind The Curious Case of Benjamin Button with 13.

A scene from the movie Slumdog Millionaire

An Oscar win forebodes well for the 52-year old Boyle as the DGA Award for Feature Film has traditionally been a near perfect barometer for the Best Director Academy Award. Since the inception of DGA Awards in 1948, only six times has the DGA Award winner not won the Academy Award, as follows: